The Ministry of Labour and Employment is likely to give shape to the National Employment Policy (NEP) by December 2021 following the implementation of four labour codes and the completion of four major surveys, including one one migrant workers.
The NEP will draw a broad road map for improving job opportunities in the country, mainly by various initiatives like skill development, bringing investment in employment intensive segments and other policy interventions.
Last year, the Parliament passed three labour codes on Industrial Relations, Social Security and Occupational Health Safety & Working Conditions (OSH).
The Code on Wages was approved by the Parliament in 2019 and its rules have been firmed up. But the implementation of the rules for the Code on Wages was held back because the government wanted to implement all four labour codes in one go. These four codes are likely to be implemented from April 1, 2021.
The implementation of these four labour codes would provide a conducive legal framework for the universalisation of social security and other safeguards for the entire workforce of over 50 crore in the country.
But for job creation, a broad NEP would be required to exploit the potential of each segment of different sectors of the economy. This would require up-to-date data on employment across the sectors in the country. This gap would be bridged by the four employment surveys to be conducted by the Labour Bureau, a wing of the Ministry.
Talking to PTI, Director General, Labour Bureau, D. S. Negi said that the bureau had begun spadework on the four surveys, field work would begin by March, and the results would be out by October-end this year (2021) only.
He said the NEP would take a shape based on the data inputs of these four surveys by December this year (2021) only.
Thereafter, the NEP would be sent for the approval of the Union Cabinet.
The document is expected to aid employment generation in the country to a great extent, especially when the government is grappling with the issue of job losses due to the pandemic.
Earlier last month, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar had also said that the four all India surveys on migrant workers, domestic workers, employment generated by professionals and the transport sector, which will be l aunched by early March 2021 , and the results of these will be available by October 2021.
The Minister had said that for any evidence-based policy making for these workers, “authentic data” on employment in the organised and unorganised sector enterprises is highly called for.
The Minister had also informed that the bureau would soon launch an ‘All India Quarterly Survey on Employment of Enterprises’ that will provide comprehensive data on the employment numbers in both the organised and unorganised sectors to address these data needs.
